Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Audrey is the kit that Natalie Malan has been working on lately and it is amazing! I have been eagerly awaiting this kit because of the glitter pattern overlay, it is so cooooool! So I know I went a little wonky with it on this layout, but seriously I couldn't help myself! I am a complete glitter freak, my scraproom is covered in the stuff, so to be able to glitter so easily and cleanly...

I am in HEAVEN!!! She has some very cool things going on at her blog too, be sure to visit!!!

If you like this layout and LOVE freebies, check back on Friday, I will make it worth your while ;)

In other Becky news, somehow I strained my neck between Sunday night and Monday morning. I would love to make up some great story about how I hucked myself off a twenty foot cornice landed in a big tub of snow, skiied through the trees to the bottom of the mountain and then tripped on the stairs to the lodge and tweeked it, but alas that is not the case. I am lame. Slept on it wrong or something and it has been making me miserable enough to pretty much cancel my life. poo.

So no body pump, tennis or cardio machines. I am just resting it trying to get it back into working order. And trust me, it is so hard for me to hold still long enough for it to not make me crazy with all the stuff I am not getting done.

And here is some Nikolay puppy cuteness! He has this stick in the backyard that he loves! He has to go and get it every time that he is back there and run the length of the yard with it, so funny! It is as long as he is and is very awkward, which makes it all the more fun for all of us! And he is so fast it is really hard to capture him on the camera, LOL! He has grown so much this week, and is all legs, "he looks like a baby deer, like Bambi" Carter told us yesterday. He is getting more spoiled everyday and is really such a joy, we just adore him!

Btw, he may look and sound perfect, but of course nothing is perfect! His secret weakness? He farts, a lot. And they are very stinky! So if you were thinking he is perfect, almost, not quite...

Friday, January 25, 2008

Went to the gym and did the body pump class, again, tired and sore, that is supposed to be a good thing, right? Got home and played with the dog out in the yard for a while so he could get his exercise too!

Went out for some lunch with Dave, had pad thai from Pei Wei, yummers!

Took the dog to visit Carter's class at school and do a little show and tell because the classmates have been very curious about what a borzoi is and what they look like! He was of course a great hit with the kids and had terrific manners with them, and Carter did a great job telling about him!

After that it was time to get Chloe from school, and then Laurel.

We decided today (read as Chloe) that Chloe's room needed repainted.

She was looking at a project I had made from some of Teresa's new products, and loved the color combo of pink and black. So off to Home Depot for some "hopeful" paint. And since it was just the girls at home we decided to treat them to what they wanted for dinner. Of course they chose Cafe Rio, their absolute favorite mexican food and diet Coke from the Sevs. Good thing I went to the gym earlier, all of that delicious food would be weighing on me if I hadn't!

All of this daily life is mixed in with some assignments for Papercrafts, contributions to some fabulous artists projects for publication, preparing an entry for the Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame contest and creating projects for booth samples for CHA.

eek.

I have had a wonderful growing experience from all of this, and feel very blessed that I have been so busy, and I do love having so much to do! I just struggle with the fact that I never want to disappoint anyone, and want to give my very best to every project I am involved with. I want to thank everyone who has been so supportive of me and have given me opportunities to share my work and help me grow!

Thursday, January 24, 2008

I am so excited for Tyler! He has been working so hard in Aikido for four years! And yesterday he received his brown belt! He led the group in warm-ups, did a demo with his Bokun and then did a mock attack with three other students that was really fun to watch them attacking him and him defending. Aikido is aout self defense, it is a martial art that does not attack, only defends. I have been so proud of him and his growth through this experience! Congratulations Tyler, I love you!B-

Monday, January 21, 2008

When puppy has to go out, puppy goes out, no matter what state of dressed you are for the day!So out in my jammies in the middle of the largest snow storm of the year I go so that he can do some important business! The snow was so deep for him, and by the mid-afternoon, it was past his belly! He was jumping around just to keep his nose above the snow line, he needed a snorkel!

Our little guy is lucky to have made it to a home that loves and worships him as much as he loves us, but not all fur babies are so fortunate. Bernie is in the race for a huge grant that she desperately needs, for more information check the badge on the left and also go to Claudine's blog or A place to bark blog. Every little bit helps, and they need unique donations, meaning that it needs to be people who have not donated yet, so word of mouth is crucial to help them win this contest!

Saturday, January 19, 2008

This week has been very exciting and has not included much sleep for Dave and I!Of course we have been letting Nikolay sleep on the bed with us at night (we would never have let our children do that, LOL!) and the little guy snores, pants and in general takes up a lot of space and is very hot bodied. Not very restful. This has induced a couple of late afternoon naps on my part and early evening doze-offs for Dave.Here is the explanation of his name:We are huge tennis fans. Aftern much negotiating about a Harry Potter name, we could come to no comfortable consensus, so we decided to try out a bunch of Russian names to see if there was something that we could all agree on there. This is where the tennis part comes in. There are a few exceptional players names that we considered. Marat Safin was one of my favorites (have you ever seen a picture of him? Go google him, worth the time!) But we were kidding around one day and I mentioned the name Nikolay Davydenko. A player that is really fun to watch and that has a very mellow and kind personality, all the things that we would like to see him be! And then I twisted the name by saying Nikolay Doggydenko and the kids laughed and then said no way. Well, we kept joking about that name at the same time we were trying to figure out another name, and it kept getting more and more liked by everyone until we decided that it fit and that

is how he was named Nikolay. (btw, Weasley is showing up as a nick, he is completely a little weasel with his toys and playing, very cute!)So the snow is no longer an issue for him, Lynn was right, he just needed some time to adjust, and now he loves it! He has a great time in the back looking for sticks, playing with vines and chasing his stuffy! He has learned how to do the stairs and the leash is no longer offensive, big steps for the little guy!

Here is the layout from the Creating Inspirations January newsletter. I loved these pictures of Tyler and I, and this layout is about how this will be his last winter with us as a child. Makes me a little melancholy!Anyway, trying to get caught up from having a crazy week, the Australian Open is on and of course that is contributing to a little of the lack of sleep, and not getting enough done! I love to watch the matches, they are really incredible!BTW, totally sore from body pump at the gym yesterday, a good thing really, but man it is a bummer that this is my reward for doing the right thing!B-

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

We want him to be a snuggler! So we are constantly putting him next to or on us! Chloe loves to fold him up like a little lamb and put him on her lap. He is 4 months old and weighs about 40 pounds.He is getting much better at "going" outside and only had one accident today! I know, TMI, but these things are important to me, LOL! Got a lot of projects and busy work going on, and that makes me happy!I can't wait to see all of the new product releases at CHA, I am a product junkie and Anaheim will give me my fix! I have had a sneak peek of Teresa's lines and I love them so much, there is literally something for everyone being released. I have been trying to work on my HOF entry, but I hate to do anything halfway, if I do it I want to be competitive and I am not sure that with my time constraints I can do things the way I want them to be done. That makes me a little sad, and I will keep plugging away, but I also want to be realistic about what I can do and do right!And thanks everyone for all of the wonderful comments about the puppy!Oh, I forgot to tell you his name!Nikolay Doggydenko.Get it?B-

Monday, January 14, 2008

Poor little guy had to get into his crate at 5:00 am Texas time to make his flight! And they let me have him at 12:30pm Utah time. That is a long time to be stewing in your own juices, let alone being so far from everything that you know!

He doesn't care for the snow, and the concrete is so cold! Of course there is no grass hanging out anywhere, and that is what he is looking for to do his puppy business on, so that will be an issue for a while I think, LOL! He had such a long day that after running carpool and errands, I snuggled up with him on the sofa and we had a little puppy nap together, it was the highlight of my day! The kids are over the moon about him, and he is working them over! They are putty in his little freckled paws!

Anyway, I hopy you like cuteness by the big spoonful, I will be sharing lots of him here!

Sunday, January 13, 2008

The little man getting here! I have been having dreams about him and so have the kids! Yeah, I know I need to get a life, LOL!

Here is my project for the Method Playground Challenge tomorrow. Products that were used were the Two Scoops line from Basic Grey (thanks Celeste!!!!) Prima Flowers, Cloud 9 raindrops and Autumn Leaves glitter chip alpha. Interestingly enough Laurel, who does not particulary like "girly" colors and things loved this paper combo! She thought that it was funky and cool enough even for her...

Gotta love a girl who knows what she is all about!

I will be sharing pictures of my little man tomorrow, so if you aren't interested in cute little puppy pics, go visit Sande, Kim, Layle or Teresa, LOL! They always have way amazing stuff happening!

Thursday, January 10, 2008

He has flight plans for Monday!!! Thanks so much to all of you who wished for good weather for us! We have had a little more warmth this January than usual (more snow too, LOL!) So the little man is getting his check-up and shots on Saturday and then saying his goodbyes to his big family in Texas and making his move up north to his new smaller family! The kids are walking around the house saying "guess what..."

"my puppy is going to be here Monday!"

"mom can you bring him right to my class after you pick him up?" Carter asked.

I replied, "ummmm, NO!"

"mom will you bring him when you pick me up from school everyday?" Laurel asked.

I don't know how to answer this one yet, we will see how much time it takes him to get used to the car.

I am getting the feeling that it might seem like an extra long weekend waiting for him, LOL!

This card was made from the Creating Inspirations January kit, and it makes me so happy just looking at it! Love pink and black together!

Scrapping wise, it has been a very busy week and it just keeps getting busier! I have a few assignments that have deadlines that are soon and then other projects that run clear up until the day I leave for Anaheim on the 8th for CHA. I am really fortunate to be so busy and it really is the craziest time of the year with all the prep work and sample making for the show!

I have been helping Teresa organize and stay sane with all of the craziness that has been going on with her product debut. Can I just say how excited I am for her, she is really happy and is creating from her heart without anybody standing over her and making editorial decisions that affect the outcome of her product line. With these lines, there is literally something for everyone. I am really proud of her and I think that she is really going to hit this show out of the park! We are going to be in booth 1343, with Product Performers, so please come by say "HI" and give me hug!

Anyway, more caffeine needs to be put into my body and I need to get back to the scrap table and get some goodies worked on!

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

I am so tired today!Got up and went and played tennis and then met Teresa at the gym for an hour of cardio, that made me tired to start with! And then we went all stinky, scraggly and soggy to the mall to get some things picked up for CHA. We were both starving, but we got what we needed and did it in record time! So now I am tired and hungry.I know this is good for me, but man it makes me kind of grumpy, LOL!Anyway, no projects to share today, too much going on for other stuff, sorry!I hope everyone else has a day that isn't so tiring!B-

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Sorry, it has taken a few extra days to get a new post up, but things have been a little hectic-er (LOL!) than usual this week! (is that even possible?)Here is a project from the January kit at Creating Inspirations. It is a very fun and colorful kit, perfect for those January blues you get from the winter doldrums!

Getting everyone back to school and into a groove is the hardest part of the holidays for me! I really miss them when they go back, but man it is nice to have the house back to myself again!

We still don't have our puppy yet, so that has us all a little bummed out, but the gal we are working with is in Texas, and that presents unusual considerations for all of us, so much patience is required from all involved!

I got to go up to Kim's last night to crop and visit for a while, we had a little chinese and got a lot done! It is fun to watch her work, she makes mistakes too, but she manages to turn hers into amazing saves, something that I find very inspiring and educational! Nicole couldn't join us, her life is also hectic, imagine that, LOL!

Hope everyone is adjusting to 2008 with no issues, and is enjoying what life is bringing!B-

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Some very exciting news in the scrapbook world!My dear friend Teresa Collins has made a huge announcement today! That is her new logo for her own product line! Go check it out, going to be some great looking things knowing her!

Here is my layout for the Method Playground challenge for the New Year!Bling in the New Year!!

We had a wonderful celebration last night, and a very excited for what 2008 has in store for us, lots of changes I am sure!B-